Just a great video. Thank you for taking the time. Not all of us grew up on a farm or have that lifelong exposure to all things tractors. You sure help bring us up to speed!
I am retired and now live in France. I bought a 6 hectare holding and it came with an old tractor ( MF 176 ). with a brush cutter attached. First time out I hit a log in the long grass and the thing stopped working. Never having owned a tractor in my life, I had not a clue where to start, BUT your video helped enormously. I could see what was to be done and found that I had sheared a bolt. Amazing how easy it is to fix once you know how. Thank you for this video . I am so chuffed to have learned this stuff.
While you are under the mower looking at the blades, check that they are all following in the same plane and that this plane is level with the deck and skids. The blade arms, skids, or the deck could get bent and if you are leveling to them, could throw you off. Also check the front to back leveling in the field, since the small tail wheel could sink deeper into the soil than the large tractor tires and then the blade could be lower in the rear and use more fuel. Mike, thanks for all your good info.
Well I was thrown into the tractor life I appreciate your videos. Always grease the u-joints however I never understood about leveling the machine.. The Kubota doesn't have a stop for lowering the front end so I will have to keep an eye on it and maybe put a block down to set it on before cutting. Thanks again appreciate it
Hi Mike, I watch and enjoy your videos and learn a lot of interesting and useful information especially the safe working practices. When leveling the deck front to back, it is not 3/4” in the length of the level it’s 3/4” over the length of the deck, 2 foot level is 1/4 inch for a deck 6 foot long. Keep up the great work, I as I will enjoy watching, what you produce. Thanks again
Did not read all comments but in case it was missed always take the key out when off the tractor. You don't want someone starting to tractor while you are under it or in another vulnerable situation. do enjoy your vids.
I won't say how many years I've been engaging the PTO on my JD3005 with my brush hog without understanding how to use the 2 stage clutch. Thanks for the video, Mike.
I really enjoy and appreciate your channel Mike. I'm out by myself so safety is always in the front of my mind working around my equipment out here in Nowhere Kansas. You're information has made life easier and safer for me... thanks!
Great advice, man. I've had plenty of trouble with twine and netwrap -- you're not kidding. Now, many of us don't have rotary cutters that are as nice or well maintained as yours, making me envy that shiny new rig! Nice piece of equipment. I guess one thing I'd add is a quick blade sharpening.
Thanks for all you do and show us Mike. Im a new owner of a "Gentleman's Farm" with 9 acres. Purchased a great new cabbed 45 horse CABELLA'S ( basically a Yanmar ) You have been extremely helpful and informative. Thank you
so many big bale people are just plain LZ leaving hay junk all over the place. in the little bale days "most" people put the bales up and kept the hay-field clean for the next cutting. thank you, a very good how to video...:) ps. on my farm when working around power farm machines wear boots or stay in the house...:/
Good job. Wasp&bee spray is cheaper than a cab but I think you do need a cab. Bobby would have off and gone with the first sting..headed for the Epipen.
Hi Mike - How about using a 750 Lb impact wrench on a low setting to tighten those pan and blade bolts? I didn't have a $500 torque wrench lying about so thats what I did and.....I'm still alive. So far.
hey mike! hey you're doing great on "the" issue. soooo much better now, at least to me. keep up the good work! and as always, lot's of useful information again in this video.
Mike I just bought a small Kubota and a 4 ‘ bush hog and a finishing mower. I am having a big problem with the wheels losing air in the and the pins are coming out and cotter keys. I am having trouble pumping the tires back up. Any suggesting will be appreciated. Thanks for your help and I watch a lot of your videos and enjoy all of them.
Mike, I have read both the tractor book and the rotary cutter book, and I still do not understand the different speeds / RPM. I have a lever for two different speeds and indicators on my tachometer for different rotary cutter rpms. Can you please do a video explaining this?
Good vid, just in time to clean the property. Would you explain the difference to people between a sheer pin/bolt and a graded bolt (the marks on the bolt head). So people don't use a hard bolt for the pin.
Shear, not sheer. I think most people use bolts because they're readily available anywhere, including their bolt pile in the barn. But use an ungraded/grade 2 (no marks), not a honkin grade 8 (5 marks). A grade 5 has 3 marks and I would not use that either. If you keep the threads IN the shear plane (so it breaks through the threads and not in the unthreaded shoulder area), it helps keep the effective bolt strength down. And coarse threaded bolts with threads in the shear plane are weaker than fine threads. Along with spare bolts and nuts you obviously need the wrenches or whatever to install them, and don't forget a hammer and punch in case you have to drive the old broken bolt half out.
aand do not be afraid to be just a bit sloppy with the grease, .. leave a little on the outside of the zerk, that way it is easy to wipe the dirt off, it has no chance to sneak in the fitting, also helps repel water,
Brother, Big like to all your videos. Just moved on to a biggish property with a lot of hilly terrain. I’m super green at all this. But I have pretty much the same new Holland tractor and brush cutter as in your videos. Big thanks for all the tips👍👍
just a thought on my oliver i can make the arms float .It's only a couple of inches but if you hit a pile of dirt it well jump up and not break a shear bolt.
Haha! what is a stump hopper? the slasher i use must predate those!!! Had a good laugh with the 10 foot cheater bar and 3 of you's to tighten the bolts up good luck!!! If you thought twine or net wrap was fun, wait until you find an old 4 or 5 wire, high tensile 2 strand barb wire fence you (didn't know was there) knew was somewhere now wrapped so tightly around underneath you can even cut it with side cutters and you have to get the angle grinder to. Also for as long as i've been alive (26+ years) the only grease the poor old thing ever got was from the pto ON the tractor, the very rare case the gearbox does get topped up (mustn't leak much i guess). had a laugh about the bits and bobs under that particular slasher the blades on the one i have access to are 1/2" thick at least and not very long either from memory 8 or 10 inches longish. Where the blades bolt on my slasher the bar used to be one solid piece until the abusing these things take finally broke it, now it is 3 layers of bar bolted together with a gap on the ends for the blades to bang around on. this slasher the bar the blades are on is so heavy if you do have the unfortunate task of taking it off to replace the seal the barb wire buggered you have to park the slasher on top of some bricks to support the bar that the blades are on undo the bolts holding it up, and lift the slasher up and move forward forget lifting it you'll break your back and do the same in revervse to put it back on...
Stump jumper...it's that big round plate underneath that the blades are attached to. You must be an Australian, I like what you guys call rotary cutters..."Slasher" is more descriptive to me than "brush hog". I've told a few friends that's what they're called there and now that's what they're calling them. We like it!
No disrespect intended here,but I'll add a couple things that have proven to work on my BUSHOG SQUEALER 60 rotary cutter.First,unless you have a ton of money,never store equipment directly on the ground,Always lay on blocks or free pallets from the hardware store,Air needs to circulate and keep it dry,Second,always scrape once a year,just like your lawnmower,all the grass away before storage,and then OILSPRAY or PAINTBRUSH oil on the underneath of the machine,and even a top coat will preserve the life of these machines greatly.Unless you don't care,and money is no problem.Grass and debris will fill the underside cavities where possible and rust out the deck.Try it,you'll like it over time.
Me and my sons and my daughter is getting ready to start us a TH-cam channel about growing vegetables on a budget and how do you hear equipment properly and what to do if you don't have a whole lot of money to operate with there's a lot of channels out there but I think ours will be unique because I'm an experienced farmer and mechanic teaching my children these trades
Hey Mike, thanks for the video. I recently purchased my first tractor. It came with a brush hog and I'm watching videos to learn how to use it properly. I see you put a level on the deck and mention leveling it side to side and front to back. When I raise the brush hog of the ground, it is much higher in front than the back. How do I level it? Do I do something with the top link, lower the back wheel, or something else? Thanks!
I think this will answer that question: th-cam.com/video/DWZdB6zX9JA/w-d-xo.html. If not, shoot me an e-mail at mike@asktractormike.com and we'll get you going. Good luck!
helpful. I am headed to your website now. As a new tractor owner (picking up a subcompact Kubota next week for a 3 acre property) I am trying to figure out which grease would be best for lubricating this machine and the implements (brush hog, box blade, grapple). This is not a 'commercial' machine by any means. Which grease to you recommend for maintaining this setup?
Robert, here's a video I did with Wes from Lube Shuttle a few years ago, he's an expert on grease, I'm not, and I thought he covered it well: th-cam.com/video/yqyzW2gC_Pg/w-d-xo.html. A good multipurpose grease is probably what you want, it's what I use. You don't need to be too creative on tractor grease.
Hello Mike, I really enjoy your videos. I have a question that is not related to Compact Tractors I'm hoping you can help me out with. My family owns farm in Eastern Oklahoma that has not been taken care of since 1981, with exception of the house. I plan on reclaiming the land after I retire in 2 months. I'm thinking about buy a tractor with 540/1000 PTO. I will be using a Batwing Mower. I have a JD 4066r and several implements here in West Texas. This tractor is not big enough. Can you tell me the pro's and con's? Thanks,
James, there should be a crank or a turnbuckle on one of the lift arms to adjust up and down. Usually it's on the right side if you're sitting on the tractor seat.
Great video, good advice. What about adjusting the tail wheel height? I set my height like you did but then set the tail wheel after I got the 3 point where I wanted it. Unfortunately mine uses bolts to adjust, but I have seen some of the nicer cutters have an infinitely adjustable wheel in the back, sometimes hydraulic. I can always dream... :)
HEY MIKE, WOULD YOU RECOMMEND THE RHINO BUSH HOG?? I GOT TO GET A NEW ONE FOR NEXT YEAR. I WOULD TRUST YOUR RECOMMENDATIONS !! IT WOULD BE A 5ft. HOGTHANKSRUSS
I don't usually make individual brand recommendations, trying to stay as neutral as possible, but will tell you I've sold Rhino products and their equipment is generally very, very good.
Mike love your videos, but I am having trouble lifting the back end of my cutter. Not sure if it the hydraulics (the front lifts up) or if I have connected wrong. But because of this my rear wheel has fallen off, and yes I watched your video on how to repair that but I need help figuring out why the rear end will not lift.
Chad Capeland I must have missed that. The "k" in what word? And as long as we're on the topic, the *only* frustration I have in Mike's wonderful videos is that he pronounces "height" with a "th". Note there is none in that word. :-) I realize that for some it's a regional or familial thing. And I've always bit my tongue in pointing it out here, not wanting to look a gift horse in the mouth. :-) Still, Mike is such a reasonable and reasoned guy that perhaps he may appreciate hearing if any would be noticing this... repeatedly. :-) Seriously, Mike, another wonderful, timely, and valuable video.
I know this is old, but i have a question . My neighbor blew the oil seal out of his gearbox and it kept leaking gear oil . So he got mad, drained all the gear oil out of the gearbox, took an air grease gun and pumped it to the full mark on the site tube with high heat grease. Is this a good or bad idea or give your opinion please .
Very common practice in the farming community. Those gears don't require a lot of lubrication so it may last a long time like that. But, it may not :).
I got #11 for you.... before you cut a field, pull the seed pods off the Johnson grass and hit it with roundup!. Either that or have a field full off that stuff.
That's no joke, I run around with a 30 gallon sprayer full of Roundup in the spring and spray my Johnson grass and like magic it's back the next year. No sense spreading those seeds around the field, it's tough enough to control as it is.
I have a question - I have a 2120 John Deere Tractor. I have a brush hog attached to it, but when I close the PTO shaft, the PTO is still moving unless I push the brush hog to the ground. Why is that? How can I fix this?
Are you saying the PTO spins when it is turned off? If so, you may have a PTO clutch failing. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but that's usually what it is and you're looking at a hefty repair bill if the tractor has to be split. It could be a linkage/cable adjustment, check that first.
When you pull the shaft apart on bushhog is it a wrong way to slide it back in..Mine will slide in anyway you turn it But you have to tie a Chain to it and pull it back apart most of the time. What am I doing wrong.
Do you mean to level the machine? There'll either be a crank or a turnbuckle that you can turn, usually just on the right side of the tractor if you're sitting in the seat. It'll be on the link that connects the lift arms to the lower three point arms.
I have a question for Mike or whomever else that wants to chime in. I have a ford 4610 2wd tractor. 52.5 pto hp. 4800 lbs. I'm thinking of a titan 8' or maybe titan 10' rotary cutter. Its heavy duty, 10' pull type cutter weighs 1480 lbs. Can I run this cutter on some semi steep ground safely? It is pretty light for a 10' cutter. Says it can handle up to 3" stuff. I know a bushhog brand 3210 10' cutter weighs 2780 lbs.
There are lots of variables there, so it would be hard to predict, including degree of slope, condition of tires, ballast, whether the grass was dry, etc. Those 4610's were pretty heavy tractors, but I think I'd prefer an 8' cutter to be on the safe side. We'll see what everyone else thinks...
Likely not, overriding clutches are critical for tractors with transmission driven PTO where the inertia from the blades of a cutter can continue to propel you when you push in the clutch. The 2038R has independent power take-off, so it shouldn't require overrunning clutch.
I'd be happy with either. Its funny you should ask because they're both owned by the same company (Alamo Group) but last I knew the products and dealer networks are still unique.
I like your videos Mike and I am a subscriber. I had a question about the slip clutch and shear bolt. I thought that a slip clutch was an add on and all rotary cutters had a shear bolt even if there was a slip clutch. If you adjust the slip clutch too tightly the shear bolt will still protect your tractor by shearing. The slip clutch should slip before breaking your shear bolt and the shear bolt should shear before breaking your tractor. Do they make rotary cutters without a shear bolt?
I've never heard that. To my knowledge, all cutters are either slip clutch or shear bolt and are ordered from the factory one way or the other. Changing to a slip clutch on those machines means removing the shear bolt mechanism (and it's more than just a bolt, there's an assembly that the bolt goes in) and replacing it with a slip clutch. There may be some older machines that had both, but everything I've been around, which is Rhino, Bush Hog and Woods, it's either slip clutch or shear bolt.
Step 1: Before walking out of the house make sure you put on some work boots. Step 2: Throw the sandles in trash so to never mistaken them from work boots again.
It should be. That lets material out the back. If it's lower in the front you cut it multiple times. It mulches it up well, but takes extra horsepower.
jay685 Hi Mike, you have a great channel! I have a john deere 4044r tractor with a loader and 8 ft cutter for our little 20 acre ranch. I want to know how I can have the cutter hooked up and the loader at the same time without having to change the hoses. john deere wants a fortune for some gadget, is there a less costly way? Thanks in advance.
Is your loader plugged into the rear remotes? So you have to disconnect the tilt and curl to power the cylinder on the cutter? If that's the scenario, here you go: th-cam.com/video/sKWr2ADJjqI/w-d-xo.html.
Ray, that's a really good question and that would be a tremendous idea for a video. I'm a little conflicted to what to tell you on this, a lot depends on what you do with your cutter. First I'll tell you, we had a slip clutch equipped cutter on our farm where I grew up and in my lifetime I never saw dad burn it in and it never visited a dealership. It sat outside it's entire life. We cut lower than I liked, ground up big rocks and never had a failure. It was built a little heavier than today's cutters, though. Me personally, without air tools, mowing high so I don't grind up many rocks, and mowing only on my own place where I know where the stumps are, and keeping the machine in the barn the bulk of the time, I'd probably burn the clutches once every three years. If I had air tools, cut low, mowed places I've never been, and kept the machine outside I'd sure try to do it at least every year. Some of these new machines have 5-6 year gearbox warranties though, and if you didn't maintain the clutch would that void the warranty? How would the manufacturer know? I'm going to try to get the opinions of some people in the industry whose opinion I value and I'll try to do a video on this in the future. Great question, I'm curious what I'll find.
Yes...I'm going to have to start paying more attention to what's going on in the background, I noticed the tripod back there too. That's my cousin Beth; who, along with her husband C.R. (who's starting to pop up in some videos) are letting me to film at their new place in the country. She'll get a nice laugh out of the "Elvis" comment.
Yup, shared an office with him for a couple of years. I might have met you but my memory is getting short. I suppose Hartville was your home town. Sure enjoy your video's
I love my Kubota, but in the last seconds of the vid, shows one really lame feature, the adjustable stop for the 3pt lift lever. Mine never worked well. Twists, moves. Have to crank it down so hard I need a vice-grip to loosen it. So, Mike, how about a fix for that?
Wow, thanks for your concern...I had a little bout of stomach flu probably made me somewhat pale. Otherwise, I think I'm okay. After sleeping for like 30 hours in a row and losing a little weight. It's been going around where I live, you almost never hear of things like this in the middle of the summer.
You may have too excessive a rake on the cutter from back to front. You generally want it to be lower in the front than the back, the owner's manual will tell you how much, usually an 1' to 2" drop from back to front is enough for the cutter to perform well. I'd try lifting the three point up slightly so the front skid plates are higher and I think the problem will go away. This video might be helpful: th-cam.com/video/DWZdB6zX9JA/w-d-xo.html
Tractor Mike, you are the best! Thanks for giving us your knowledge. You are an extraordinary human!
Just a great video. Thank you for taking the time. Not all of us grew up on a farm or have that lifelong exposure to all things tractors. You sure help bring us up to speed!
Great tips for a new Hog owner and user. Thanks!
I am retired and now live in France. I bought a 6 hectare holding and it came with an old tractor ( MF 176 ). with a brush cutter attached. First time out I hit a log in the long grass and the thing stopped working. Never having owned a tractor in my life, I had not a clue where to start, BUT your video helped enormously. I could see what was to be done and found that I had sheared a bolt. Amazing how easy it is to fix once you know how. Thank you for this video . I am so chuffed to have learned this stuff.
While you are under the mower looking at the blades, check that they are all following in the same plane and that this plane is level with the deck and skids. The blade arms, skids, or the deck could get bent and if you are leveling to them, could throw you off. Also check the front to back leveling in the field, since the small tail wheel could sink deeper into the soil than the large tractor tires and then the blade could be lower in the rear and use more fuel.
Mike, thanks for all your good info.
Always a great video Mike and I can always count on learning something from you even after fooling with tractors over 40 yrs.
Well I was thrown into the tractor life I appreciate your videos. Always grease the u-joints however I never understood about leveling the machine.. The Kubota doesn't have a stop for lowering the front end so I will have to keep an eye on it and maybe put a block down to set it on before cutting. Thanks again appreciate it
Hi Mike, I watch and enjoy your videos and learn a lot of interesting and useful information especially the safe working practices. When leveling the deck front to back, it is not 3/4” in the length of the level it’s 3/4” over the length of the deck, 2 foot level is 1/4 inch for a deck 6 foot long.
Keep up the great work, I as I will enjoy watching, what you produce. Thanks again
Did not read all comments but in case it was missed always take the key out when off the tractor. You don't want someone starting to tractor while you are under it or in another vulnerable situation. do enjoy your vids.
I won't say how many years I've been engaging the PTO on my JD3005 with my brush hog without understanding how to use the 2 stage clutch. Thanks for the video, Mike.
I really enjoy and appreciate your channel Mike. I'm out by myself so safety is always in the front of my mind working around my equipment out here in Nowhere Kansas. You're information has made life easier and safer for me... thanks!
Great advice, man. I've had plenty of trouble with twine and netwrap -- you're not kidding. Now, many of us don't have rotary cutters that are as nice or well maintained as yours, making me envy that shiny new rig! Nice piece of equipment. I guess one thing I'd add is a quick blade sharpening.
Thanks for all you do and show us Mike. Im a new owner of a "Gentleman's Farm" with 9 acres. Purchased a great new cabbed 45 horse CABELLA'S ( basically a Yanmar ) You have been extremely helpful and informative. Thank you
thank you for all the usefull information of your channel. hope things are going good for you and wish you and your channel much success.
Your channel is an excellent service.
Thanks Thad, I appreciate it. My way of giving back a little to an industry that has been good to me.
Very thorough video, very professional, great work!
so many big bale people are just plain LZ leaving hay junk all over the place. in the little bale days "most" people put the bales up and kept the hay-field clean for the next cutting. thank you, a very good how to video...:) ps. on my farm when working around power farm machines wear boots or stay in the house...:/
Great instructions for the beginner.
Good job. Wasp&bee spray is cheaper than a cab but I think you do need a cab. Bobby would have off and gone with the first sting..headed for the Epipen.
Hi Mike - How about using a 750 Lb impact wrench on a low setting to tighten those pan and blade bolts? I didn't have a $500 torque wrench lying about so thats what I did and.....I'm still alive. So far.
hey mike! hey you're doing great on "the" issue. soooo much better now, at least to me. keep up the good work! and as always, lot's of useful information again in this video.
Mike
I just bought a small Kubota and a 4 ‘ bush hog and a finishing mower. I am having a big problem with the wheels losing air in the and the pins are coming out and cotter keys. I am having trouble pumping the tires back up. Any suggesting will be appreciated. Thanks for your help and I watch a lot of your videos and enjoy all of them.
Very helpful videos. Thank you. That Rhino mower is nice heavy duty. Weld bilt.
Mike, I have read both the tractor book and the rotary cutter book, and I still do not understand the different speeds / RPM. I have a lever for two different speeds and indicators on my tachometer for different rotary cutter rpms. Can you please do a video explaining this?
Great attention to detail! Love it.
Good vid, just in time to clean the property.
Would you explain the difference to people between a sheer pin/bolt and a graded bolt (the marks on the bolt head). So people don't use a hard bolt for the pin.
Shear, not sheer. I think most people use bolts because they're readily available anywhere, including their bolt pile in the barn. But use an ungraded/grade 2 (no marks), not a honkin grade 8 (5 marks). A grade 5 has 3 marks and I would not use that either. If you keep the threads IN the shear plane (so it breaks through the threads and not in the unthreaded shoulder area), it helps keep the effective bolt strength down. And coarse threaded bolts with threads in the shear plane are weaker than fine threads. Along with spare bolts and nuts you obviously need the wrenches or whatever to install them, and don't forget a hammer and punch in case you have to drive the old broken bolt half out.
I am getting my tractor ready to do some brush hogging now and is doing that when the mowing is finished around my lawn.
Looking forward to the next installment!
I always wipe those zerks before injecting grease. If you don't, it is easy to push the debris that is on them directly into the bearing. Just sayin.
Great advice! My bad...
aand do not be afraid to be just a bit sloppy with the grease, .. leave a little on the outside of the zerk, that way it is easy to wipe the dirt off, it has no chance to sneak in the fitting, also helps repel water,
Same here. I wipe them clean afterwards too, although many folks feel it's best to leave them greasy.
Mauser304 yep. Even a little bit of dirt going into a bearing just a tiny bit will toast it and wear it out prematurely
Wipe then before and after
Brother, Big like to all your videos. Just moved on to a biggish property with a lot of hilly terrain. I’m super green at all this. But I have pretty much the same new Holland tractor and brush cutter as in your videos. Big thanks for all the tips👍👍
You're welcome, thanks for watching!
Nice work. Looks like it is ready to go.
Thanks for the great video. However, I couldn't find the "ten items to check ..." list on your website.
Here ya go! You'll find it below "The History of Tractor Mike." asktractormike.com/about-contact-mike/
just a thought on my oliver i can make the arms float .It's only a couple of inches but if you hit a pile of dirt it well jump up and not break a shear bolt.
Haha! what is a stump hopper? the slasher i use must predate those!!! Had a good laugh with the 10 foot cheater bar and 3 of you's to tighten the bolts up good luck!!!
If you thought twine or net wrap was fun, wait until you find an old 4 or 5 wire, high tensile 2 strand barb wire fence you (didn't know was there) knew was somewhere now wrapped so tightly around underneath you can even cut it with side cutters and you have to get the angle grinder to.
Also for as long as i've been alive (26+ years) the only grease the poor old thing ever got was from the pto ON the tractor, the very rare case the gearbox does get topped up (mustn't leak much i guess). had a laugh about the bits and bobs under that particular slasher the blades on the one i have access to are 1/2" thick at least and not very long either from memory 8 or 10 inches longish.
Where the blades bolt on my slasher the bar used to be one solid piece until the abusing these things take finally broke it, now it is 3 layers of bar bolted together with a gap on the ends for the blades to bang around on.
this slasher the bar the blades are on is so heavy if you do have the unfortunate task of taking it off to replace the seal the barb wire buggered you have to park the slasher on top of some bricks to support the bar that the blades are on undo the bolts holding it up, and lift the slasher up and move forward forget lifting it you'll break your back and do the same in revervse to put it back on...
Stump jumper...it's that big round plate underneath that the blades are attached to. You must be an Australian, I like what you guys call rotary cutters..."Slasher" is more descriptive to me than "brush hog". I've told a few friends that's what they're called there and now that's what they're calling them. We like it!
Tractor Mike thanks for the free download of TTD
No disrespect intended here,but I'll add a couple things that have proven to work on my BUSHOG SQUEALER 60 rotary cutter.First,unless you have a ton of money,never store equipment directly on the ground,Always lay on blocks or free pallets from the hardware store,Air needs to circulate and keep it dry,Second,always scrape once a year,just like your lawnmower,all the grass away before storage,and then OILSPRAY or PAINTBRUSH oil on the underneath of the machine,and even a top coat will preserve the life of these machines greatly.Unless you don't care,and money is no problem.Grass and debris will fill the underside cavities where possible and rust out the deck.Try it,you'll like it over time.
Me and my sons and my daughter is getting ready to start us a TH-cam channel about growing vegetables on a budget and how do you hear equipment properly and what to do if you don't have a whole lot of money to operate with there's a lot of channels out there but I think ours will be unique because I'm an experienced farmer and mechanic teaching my children these trades
Hey Mike, thanks for the video. I recently purchased my first tractor. It came with a brush hog and I'm watching videos to learn how to use it properly. I see you put a level on the deck and mention leveling it side to side and front to back. When I raise the brush hog of the ground, it is much higher in front than the back. How do I level it? Do I do something with the top link, lower the back wheel, or something else? Thanks!
I think this will answer that question: th-cam.com/video/DWZdB6zX9JA/w-d-xo.html. If not, shoot me an e-mail at mike@asktractormike.com and we'll get you going. Good luck!
I've run a bush hog for over 47 years: never in those close to 50 years did I put a level on the deck to level to 3/4" pitch.
Hey it me Karen, should you be wearing sandals while working with this type of equipment?
helpful. I am headed to your website now. As a new tractor owner (picking up a subcompact Kubota next week for a 3 acre property) I am trying to figure out which grease would be best for lubricating this machine and the implements (brush hog, box blade, grapple). This is not a 'commercial' machine by any means. Which grease to you recommend for maintaining this setup?
Robert, here's a video I did with Wes from Lube Shuttle a few years ago, he's an expert on grease, I'm not, and I thought he covered it well: th-cam.com/video/yqyzW2gC_Pg/w-d-xo.html. A good multipurpose grease is probably what you want, it's what I use. You don't need to be too creative on tractor grease.
@@TractorMike thanks
Hello Mike, I really enjoy your videos. I have a question that is not related to Compact Tractors I'm hoping you can help me out with. My family owns farm in Eastern Oklahoma that has not been taken care of since 1981, with exception of the house. I plan on reclaiming the land after I retire in 2 months. I'm thinking about buy a tractor with 540/1000 PTO. I will be using a Batwing Mower. I have a JD 4066r and several implements here in West Texas. This tractor is not big enough. Can you tell me the pro's and con's? Thanks,
Pro's and con's of 540 RPM versus 1000?
Very informative Mike. Got it downloaded. Thanks.
Great videos, thank you!
thanks for the tips Mike. using mine today. seen in the comments you were not well hope your feel better👍
Thanks, Mike.
how do I tie the tractor down on the trailer with a bucket on front and a bush hog on he back . on a 18 foot trailer.
Hit those bolt with a neumatic 1/2 pistol grip inpact,,, it kicks about 400 ft/lb of torque
Thanks for the video Mike. Got a question for you, my brush hog deck is not level from side to side... how do I adjust that?
James, there should be a crank or a turnbuckle on one of the lift arms to adjust up and down. Usually it's on the right side if you're sitting on the tractor seat.
Thanks for the great and simple video.
Good tips - well explained.
Great video, good advice. What about adjusting the tail wheel height? I set my height like you did but then set the tail wheel after I got the 3 point where I wanted it. Unfortunately mine uses bolts to adjust, but I have seen some of the nicer cutters have an infinitely adjustable wheel in the back, sometimes hydraulic. I can always dream... :)
Have you ever konsidered a 12V linear akktuator? Like a worm drive masquerading as a hydraulik. ;)
The instructions on my 5 ft Land Pride rc, say to have the front higher than the back.
thanks for your time very helpful
Great video, great information
HEY MIKE, WOULD YOU RECOMMEND THE RHINO BUSH HOG?? I GOT TO GET A NEW ONE FOR NEXT YEAR. I WOULD TRUST YOUR RECOMMENDATIONS !! IT WOULD BE A 5ft. HOGTHANKSRUSS
I don't usually make individual brand recommendations, trying to stay as neutral as possible, but will tell you I've sold Rhino products and their equipment is generally very, very good.
Best to grease before tractor hook up and to loosen drive shaft if frozen in place
Mike love your videos, but I am having trouble lifting the back end of my cutter. Not sure if it the hydraulics (the front lifts up) or if I have connected wrong. But because of this my rear wheel has fallen off, and yes I watched your video on how to repair that but I need help figuring out why the rear end will not lift.
Send pictures to mike@asktractormike.com and I'll try to help you figure it out.
3/4” with a little short level is a lot different than 3/4” with a 6” level when setting the front to back tilt. Long level is what you need to use.
laser level
Thank you for enunciating the "k".
Chad Capeland I must have missed that. The "k" in what word?
And as long as we're on the topic, the *only* frustration I have in Mike's wonderful videos is that he pronounces "height" with a "th". Note there is none in that word. :-)
I realize that for some it's a regional or familial thing. And I've always bit my tongue in pointing it out here, not wanting to look a gift horse in the mouth. :-)
Still, Mike is such a reasonable and reasoned guy that perhaps he may appreciate hearing if any would be noticing this... repeatedly. :-)
Seriously, Mike, another wonderful, timely, and valuable video.
Mike, How many foot pound of torque do we need for the nut behind the wheel? LOL
I know this is old, but i have a question . My neighbor blew the oil seal out of his gearbox and it kept leaking gear oil . So he got mad, drained all the gear oil out of the gearbox, took an air grease gun and pumped it to the full mark on the site tube with high heat grease. Is this a good or bad idea or give your opinion please .
Very common practice in the farming community. Those gears don't require a lot of lubrication so it may last a long time like that. But, it may not :).
Tractor Mike thank you mike
Good information
I got #11 for you.... before you cut a field, pull the seed pods off the Johnson grass and hit it with roundup!.
Either that or have a field full off that stuff.
That's no joke, I run around with a 30 gallon sprayer full of Roundup in the spring and spray my Johnson grass and like magic it's back the next year. No sense spreading those seeds around the field, it's tough enough to control as it is.
I have a question - I have a 2120 John Deere Tractor. I have a brush hog attached to it, but when I close the PTO shaft, the PTO is still moving unless I push the brush hog to the ground. Why is that? How can I fix this?
Are you saying the PTO spins when it is turned off? If so, you may have a PTO clutch failing. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but that's usually what it is and you're looking at a hefty repair bill if the tractor has to be split. It could be a linkage/cable adjustment, check that first.
Will this check list work with most brush hogs like a land pride?
Absolutely!
When you pull the shaft apart on bushhog is it a wrong way to slide it back in..Mine will slide in anyway you turn it But you have to tie a Chain to it and pull it back apart most of the time. What am I doing wrong.
Are you sliding it all the way in? Try stopping a couple of inches before it bottoms out and that may cure the problem.
Nice thanks MIke.
Great stuff
How do you make the adjustment on the three point
Do you mean to level the machine? There'll either be a crank or a turnbuckle that you can turn, usually just on the right side of the tractor if you're sitting in the seat. It'll be on the link that connects the lift arms to the lower three point arms.
On the torquing you can get a torque multiplier.
I have a question for Mike or whomever else that wants to chime in. I have a ford 4610 2wd tractor. 52.5 pto hp. 4800 lbs. I'm thinking of a titan 8' or maybe titan 10' rotary cutter. Its heavy duty, 10' pull type cutter weighs 1480 lbs. Can I run this cutter on some semi steep ground safely? It is pretty light for a 10' cutter. Says it can handle up to 3" stuff. I know a bushhog brand 3210 10' cutter weighs 2780 lbs.
There are lots of variables there, so it would be hard to predict, including degree of slope, condition of tires, ballast, whether the grass was dry, etc. Those 4610's were pretty heavy tractors, but I think I'd prefer an 8' cutter to be on the safe side. We'll see what everyone else thinks...
Yeah I've never done any of this. Aside from the clutches and daily greasing.
That's all you have to do anyway
Do I need an override clutch for my 2038r and Bush hog
Likely not, overriding clutches are critical for tractors with transmission driven PTO where the inertia from the blades of a cutter can continue to propel you when you push in the clutch. The 2038R has independent power take-off, so it shouldn't require overrunning clutch.
Hey Mike, how do you like that Rhino compared to Bush Hog? What would you say is the better brand and why? Thanks!
I'd be happy with either. Its funny you should ask because they're both owned by the same company (Alamo Group) but last I knew the products and dealer networks are still unique.
I like your videos Mike and I am a subscriber. I had a question about the slip clutch and shear bolt. I thought that a slip clutch was an add on and all rotary cutters had a shear bolt even if there was a slip clutch. If you adjust the slip clutch too tightly the shear bolt will still protect your tractor by shearing. The slip clutch should slip before breaking your shear bolt and the shear bolt should shear before breaking your tractor. Do they make rotary cutters without a shear bolt?
I've never heard that. To my knowledge, all cutters are either slip clutch or shear bolt and are ordered from the factory one way or the other. Changing to a slip clutch on those machines means removing the shear bolt mechanism (and it's more than just a bolt, there's an assembly that the bolt goes in) and replacing it with a slip clutch. There may be some older machines that had both, but everything I've been around, which is Rhino, Bush Hog and Woods, it's either slip clutch or shear bolt.
5:40 Geez. Big lunch Mike?
What do I have to hit my attachments pto shafts to get it off my tractor?
Step 1: Before walking out of the house make sure you put on some work boots.
Step 2: Throw the sandles in trash so to never mistaken them from work boots again.
@3:17 that's a really unstable block. i hope that you have more than 1.
Mike is the brush hog deck front lower then rear?
It should be. That lets material out the back. If it's lower in the front you cut it multiple times. It mulches it up well, but takes extra horsepower.
Tractor Mike got them Mandles on lol
Round chocks are very dangerous as they can roll out and the deck will drop on you. Please use square stock instead.
jay685
Hi Mike, you have a great channel! I have a john deere 4044r tractor with a loader and 8 ft cutter for our little 20 acre ranch. I want to know how I can have the cutter hooked up and the loader at the same time without having to change the hoses. john deere wants a fortune for some gadget, is there a less costly way? Thanks in advance.
Is your loader plugged into the rear remotes? So you have to disconnect the tilt and curl to power the cylinder on the cutter? If that's the scenario, here you go: th-cam.com/video/sKWr2ADJjqI/w-d-xo.html.
Seriously dude.....Sandals around machinery???
The heat clouded my better judgement.
😊 Enjoy your videos. Thanks for doing them!
That is self-correcting.
Sandles...! I may have to watch more of your other videos to regain respect.
BTW thank you for your videos, I just got a new holland tc26da
Drop a battery from a JD 4020 on your foot, and you’ll never work without steel toed boots again.
LOVE THE VIDEOS .
I keep my brush hog stored inside a shop, is it still necessary to burn the clutch?
Ray, that's a really good question and that would be a tremendous idea for a video. I'm a little conflicted to what to tell you on this, a lot depends on what you do with your cutter. First I'll tell you, we had a slip clutch equipped cutter on our farm where I grew up and in my lifetime I never saw dad burn it in and it never visited a dealership. It sat outside it's entire life. We cut lower than I liked, ground up big rocks and never had a failure. It was built a little heavier than today's cutters, though. Me personally, without air tools, mowing high so I don't grind up many rocks, and mowing only on my own place where I know where the stumps are, and keeping the machine in the barn the bulk of the time, I'd probably burn the clutches once every three years. If I had air tools, cut low, mowed places I've never been, and kept the machine outside I'd sure try to do it at least every year. Some of these new machines have 5-6 year gearbox warranties though, and if you didn't maintain the clutch would that void the warranty? How would the manufacturer know? I'm going to try to get the opinions of some people in the industry whose opinion I value and I'll try to do a video on this in the future. Great question, I'm curious what I'll find.
Did Elvis walk up to the tractor while you were under the cutter?!
Yes...I'm going to have to start paying more attention to what's going on in the background, I noticed the tripod back there too. That's my cousin Beth; who, along with her husband C.R. (who's starting to pop up in some videos) are letting me to film at their new place in the country. She'll get a nice laugh out of the "Elvis" comment.
lift it up pull forward if there is a rattlesnake there ,back up drop and make snake sausage 😄😄😄😄😄
Snausage.
Hey Mike, I saw your RMP hat. I worked there 30 years, Who do you know from RMP?
A fellow by the name of Skinner gave me that cap at least ten years ago. He and I go back about thirty+ years. Do you know him?
Yup, shared an office with him for a couple of years. I might have met you but my memory is getting short. I suppose Hartville was your home town. Sure enjoy your video's
I'm a Marionville boy. Jim was my intern long long ago (I'm not THAT much older than he is) and I worked with Gene for a number of years. Good family!
I love my Kubota, but in the last seconds of the vid, shows one really lame feature, the adjustable stop for the 3pt lift lever. Mine never worked well. Twists, moves. Have to crank it down so hard I need a vice-grip to loosen it. So, Mike, how about a fix for that?
Hi Mike, are you OK? you don't look as well as previous vids?
Wow, thanks for your concern...I had a little bout of stomach flu probably made me somewhat pale. Otherwise, I think I'm okay. After sleeping for like 30 hours in a row and losing a little weight. It's been going around where I live, you almost never hear of things like this in the middle of the summer.
Lol OSHA approved Jerusalem Cruisers
I'll show my lack of farm smarts here...So - the bush hog does NOT use it's wheels when cutting?
Mike my Brush Hog cut into the ground when I turn left or Right what am I doing wrong
You may have too excessive a rake on the cutter from back to front. You generally want it to be lower in the front than the back, the owner's manual will tell you how much, usually an 1' to 2" drop from back to front is enough for the cutter to perform well. I'd try lifting the three point up slightly so the front skid plates are higher and I think the problem will go away. This video might be helpful: th-cam.com/video/DWZdB6zX9JA/w-d-xo.html
subscribed
Forgot to grease the rear wheel axle.
Mike , I really like you videos , but Lord man get you a pair of work boots. LOL.
Excellent! But please put some boots on
never mind the differential.... :(